


Smelly Problem

by Vicky



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Babies, F/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-10-09
Updated: 2010-10-09
Packaged: 2017-10-12 13:10:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,144
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/125164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vicky/pseuds/Vicky
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>John has a little problem...</p>
            </blockquote>





	Smelly Problem

**Author's Note:**

> This ficlet was completed quite some time ago but I wasn't satisfied with it. So I added things here and there and decided to send it to beta before I changed opinion again. Also this is a baby!fic so don't read it if you don't like that! Many thanks to my beta Jaclyn, who's definitely the best! (written in 2007)

John Sheppard was a damn fine soldier. He could analyse a situation in an instant and determine whether or not it would endanger his team. He could plan a whole strategy to rescue his people from the Wraith, or pilot a Jumper right into a hive ship. He was able to stand up to a Wraith Queen and even make a joke at the less convenient moment to relax his team.

But John Sheppard, Lieutenant-Colonel in the United States Air Force and military leader of an expedition stationed in another galaxy, was never confronted to this problem…

Standing in front of his problem, he frowned, wondering how it was possible that something so small could smell like that. Deciding that the sooner he began, the sooner he'd finish that task, he bent over to pick up his daughter from her crib and put her on the changing table.

"Shh, sweetheart, Mommy's sleeping and we don't want to wake her up."

He slowly stripped her off of her bodysuit before taking the smelling diaper off too.

"Whoa!" he exclaimed as his nose was offended by a stronger stink. "You sure beat Rodney and his feet!"

Taking a new diaper after having cleaned her, he was once more grateful that they now had a way to communicate with Earth; he didn't know what they would have done without those diapers. Once his daughter was once again dressed, he sat in the rocking chair Halling made for them and started lulling her to sleep. Gazing up, he saw his wife's sleeping form turned towards them on the bed and memories from the past few days flooded back to his mind.

 _Flash-Back_

 _John was sleeping peacefully when he was awoken by someone poking his arm. Stirring slightly, he turned away, not wanting to wake up fully yet._

 _"John, wake up!" he heard his wife hiss, obviously in pain, which made him turn back towards her, concerned eyes on her._

 _"What is it, Liz?"_

 _"Your child decided it was finally time to come."_

 _"What? Ok, let me call Beckett. Then, we'll have to get you to the infirmary. And I'm sure I'm forgetting something but I can't remember what…"_

 _"John, calm down. We have time. And…," she stopped, putting a hand on her stomach._

 _"Contractions?"_

 _"Yeah," she said as she released a breath. "I'm ok, they're not that strong… yet," she added as an afterthought. "I was going to say that you have to call Rodney too, you promised him."_

 _"Yeah, yeah. But first, infirmary and Carson."_

 _After that, the next few hours was spent in a blur for John. He would never have suspected Elizabeth to have such a colourful mouth but he guessed he was partly responsible for her sufferings. But finally, after eight hours of labour, she gave birth to their daughter. When Carson put the crying baby on her chest, he couldn't help but be lost in admiration for his wife. He might have contributed in creating this new life, but she had done most of the job, carrying, protecting her for nine months._

 _The doctor left them alone to bond with their daughter and to tell the good news to their friends._

 _"Shh, it's okay," he heard Elizabeth whisper, tears running freely on her cheeks. She stroked her cheek, hoping that that would calm her down. "I know you'd rather stay in my womb but Daddy and I couldn't wait to meet you."_

 _The baby girl seemed to have understood her somehow, her cries subsiding. John slowly held out his hand towards her, stroking her little hand. He gasped when he saw her grasp one of his fingers, before looking up towards his wife. She was watching him, eyes filled with something he could associate with pride. He leaned slightly to kiss his daughter's head before kissing Elizabeth on the lips._

 _"Thank you," he whispered as she brought a hand to his face to wipe the tears he hadn't realised he'd shed._

 _"Thank you," she repeated in answer._

 _She put a hand on the back on his neck to bring him closer to her, giving him a breathtaking kiss._

 _"So, what should we name her?" he asked, stroking the baby's head. "Because, if I have to remind you, we still haven't chosen one between the four we thought of for a girl."_

 _"She looks like an Emily to me," Elizabeth answered, looking at their daughter before turning her head towards John. "What do you think?"_

 _"Yeah. Emily. Emily Sheppard. Welcome to the world, Emily," he said kissing her forehead, before turning towards Elizabeth to kiss her once more._

 _End of flashback_

Thinking back on this day, John had to smile. Carson had released them the next day, saying that they would be more comfortable in their quarters than in the infirmary with its constant buzzing. He was a little awkward with her at first, and he still was in a way, but he wasn't alone in this. Looking down at Emily, he saw she was sound asleep once more, but he wasn't ready to put her back in her crib yet. Running a hand on her back, he started humming a lullaby he remembered his mother singing to him when he was just a little boy. He thought he had forgotten it, but with Emily in his life, it came back.

Looking up, he noticed that Elizabeth was gazing at them from where she was laying in their bed. So enthralled in their daughter, he hadn't heard her waking up

"Hey," he whispered. "You ok?"

"Yeah. Just a little tired."

"Good. You should get some more sleep while you can. Beckett won't be there for another two hours."

"Why don't you two join me?" she asked, patting the empty side of the bed.

John smiled and got up from the rocking chair to lie on the bed besides Elizabeth, Emily resting on his chest.

"She's so small," his wife marvelled, running a finger on her small cheek. "And I still don't realise she's there. Yesterday, I was in front of the mirror in the bathroom and was surprised that my stomach was flat. Well, definitely not flat, but not as big as it used to be those last few months."

"She kept us waiting, that we can say."

"Yeah, a few more days, and Carson would have wanted to do a C-Section," she replied, yawning by the time she was finished. "I'm glad she decided she wanted to get out before he came to that."

"You should really sleep," he said, turning his head slightly to kiss hers which was resting on his shoulder.

Her eyes were already half-closed but she still managed to mutter some words and he had to smile again.

Gazing down at his wife and daughter, he realised not for the first time that he finally had a family.

 

Fini


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